My Comments: I recently posted about how ‘fair trade’ and ‘fair competition’ are two different sides of the same coin and that what we are missing from American exceptionalism is ‘fair competition’, thanks to Wall Street and Congress. This should make you think carefully about your upcoming votes. By Will Marshall and Ed Gerwin, April …
Continue reading Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders Are Delusional on Trade Policy
My Comments: This is a hot topic. No one likes to leave money laying on the table. Given the chance you will live longer than expected and don’t have the financial reserves you thought you might have, taking advantage of everything possible from the Social Security system is critical for many of us. By Dan …
Continue reading Can I File and Suspend My Social Security Benefits?
My Comments: This is about something called an IPO. For the uninitiated, this is an Initial Public Offering. It’s when a company, new or old, attempts to raise capital by offering shares representing an ownership interest to the general public. It’s like a giant, global auction. It's not the final bid that determines how much …
My Comments: For many of us, retirement once seemed like a glorious goal to achieve. Now that many of us are here, the light isn’t so bright. As a financial planner, both for myself and others, the landscape is very different from what it was as little as twenty-five years ago. The fundamentals are the …
Continue reading Why You’ll Need to Own More Stocks After You Retire
My Comments: In the world of finance, especially here in the US, what the Fed does is a huge determinant of how our lives play out when it comes to our money and purchasing power. People have made and lost fortunes on their expectations of what the Fed will do next. Here is ‘projection’ about …
Continue reading Here’s The Big Economic Risk The Federal Reserve Is Willing To Take
My Comments: Social Security is a complicated topic. If you are not yet 70 years old, and/or have not yet committed to how you will take your Social Security benefits, you should read this. With so many variables, the typical process for making a good decision is total confusion for most people, even financial planners. …
Continue reading Read This Before You Take Social Security Benefits
My Comments: On its face, this looks like just another political swipe at the remaining presidential hopefuls on the right. However, as an aspiring economist and financial planner, I appreciate the role played by government in the financial sector and know how critical it is. These comments point to some dubious thinking on the part …
Continue reading The Monetary Madness of Trump, Cruz and Rubio
My Comments: The word "interest" defines the price someone is willing to pay to use your money. In the world of economics, if the price is zero, and knowing price is a function of supply and demand, there is either no demand or the supply far exceeds the demand. Think oil prices these days. Interest …
My Comments: After 43 years as a financial planner and investment company owner, I can say with certainty that the future outcome for your money is a combination of luck, discipline, timing and knowledge. I have no clue how we’ll do in 2016 but this is at least a start. By Jason Hall Published January …
Continue reading Starting to Invest in 2016? Here’s What You Need to Know
My Comments: Social security payments to my wife and I are a critical element of the life we live. It can be argued that without those payments, we’d have scaled back in terms of what we spend for food and housing. The fact remains that given expectations of a monthly income from that source, our …
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